중앙데일리

Cancellation of talks takes fizz out of markets

Nov 08,2018

Korean shares ended lower Wednesday as U.S. midterm election results rolled in and the postponement of U.S.-North Korea talks increased investor concerns. The Korean won appreciated against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Kospi slid into negative territory towards the end of the session, falling 10.93 points or 0.52 percent, to 2,078.69.

Analysts said reports of friction in U.S.-North Korea talks stirred investors, while the U.S. midterm election results did not have a big impact on investor sentiment.

“While investors have digested the elections issue, the delay in the U.S.-North Korea talks appeared to dampen investor sentiment,” said Ha In-whan, an analyst at SK Securities.

“The partial victory for President Donald Trump would block much of his agenda, but the shift in Congress would not make any tangible changes to America’s ongoing trade frictions with China, as trade issues are under the executive branch.”

Offshore investors sold a net 60.0 billion won and institutional investors a net 64.5 billion won. Retail investors were net buyers for the third consecutive session, picking up a net 97.2 billion won.

The junior Kosdaq also ended the session lower, declining 9.18 points or 1.33 percent to 682.37. The tech and bio-heavy index followed the benchmark index, falling after reports of the delay in U.S.-North Korea talks. Institutions were net sellers for the sixth consecutive session in the secondary index.

The Korean won closed at 1,123.30 won against the U.S. dollar, down 0.50 won from Tuesday’s close.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, ended higher. The yield on three-year bonds was down 2.0 basis points to 1.96 percent, and the return on 10-year bonds fell 3.6 basis points to 2.26 percent.